Malita director at centre of BOV rescue loan controversy exits board

Robert Suban, the long-serving Malita Investments director whose dual role on the boards of the cash-strapped state-controlled property company and Bank of Valletta drew scrutiny during Malita’s financial crisis, has stepped down after 12 years on the company’s board, bringing to a close a tumultuous chapter marked by political interference, financial mismanagement and an emergency taxpayer-backed rescue.

The departure, confirmed in a company announcement following Malita’s delayed annual general meeting earlier this month, comes as the government-controlled company attempts to rebuild confidence after one of the most turbulent periods in its history.

The company thanked Suban for his “valuable contribution and dedicated service” and said there were no matters relating to his departure requiring disclosure under the Capital Markets Rules.

Suban’s exit follows the approval of a €28 million rescue loan by Bank of Valletta, which prevented Malita from sliding further into financial crisis after it ran out of cash and was forced to halt several government social housing projects.

The financing package raised governance concerns because Suban simultaneously served as a non-executive director of Malita while also sitting on Bank of Valletta’s board and chairing its influential Risk Committee, responsible for overseeing the bank’s lending risks.

When The Shift revealed in January that BOV was preparing to rescue the struggling company, the bank insisted it had robust procedures to manage conflicts of interest but declined to comment on the specific financing arrangements, citing client confidentiality.

As predicted, the loan was eventually confirmed in May through Malita’s annual report, allowing the company to restart the stalled housing projects after months of delays.

Malita’s financial collapse did not happen overnight.

The government-controlled company entered the crisis after years of growing political interference under former Housing Minister Roderick Galdes, whose ministry exercised effective control over Malita’s flagship social housing programme.

Former Labour MEP and Malita chairperson Marlene Mizzi publicly accused Galdes of repeatedly interfering in the company’s operations, bypassing established governance structures and maintaining unusually close relationships with contractors entrusted with the multi-million-euro developments.

The allegations were followed by further revelations that Galdes had purchased property from one of the contractors involved in Malita projects at a price substantially below market value, intensifying questions about his relationship with businesses benefiting from government contracts.

By the time the crisis became public, Malita had exhausted its available cash resources, recorded a sharp deterioration in its financial performance, suspended dividend payments to shareholders and left contractors waiting for millions of euro in unpaid bills.

The fallout also proved politically costly for Galdes, who was forced to resign from Cabinet. He was subsequently prevented by Labour’s executive from contesting the general elections and has since been left in political limbo, with ministers reportedly refusing to offer him a position despite remaining on the government payroll as an employee of the Planning Authority.

At the AGM held earlier this month, shareholders elected Joseph Rodgers and former Grand Harbour Marina director Tarcisio Barbara to the board to represent them.

Suban, an academic, represented the minority shareholders on the board. He is Dean of the Faculty of Banking, the same faculty where Gordon Cordina, the government-appointed chairman of Bank of Valletta, lectures.